We’re running out of superlatives to describe Devin Hester’s work as a punt returner, so we’ll just let the numbers do the talking.
Hester, who was named the NFC Special Teams Player of the Week, returned a punt 69 yards for a touchdown in the Bears’ 34-29 win over Carolina. It was Hester’s 11th career punt return for a score, the most of anyone in the history of the game and his 15 combined kickoff and punt returns are also a league record. Even more impressive may be the fact that Hester’s 11 returns have come on 182 career punt returns. Eric Metcalf, who was tied for the mark with Hester prior to Sunday, returned 10 punts for touchdowns but had 351 total returns in his career.
Hester also had a 73-yard kickoff return to set up a Bears touchdown in the first half of the game. All of that made him an easy choice for his 10th NFC Special Teams Player of the Week Award, the most of anyone in history which makes sense given how special Hester has been as a returner since entering the league in 2006.